Latch type clutch mechanism



March 1s, 1952 W. H. BRADLEY LATCH` TYPE CLUTCH MECHANISM original Filed June 16, 1944 wmv/eww@ 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 w. H. BRADLEY LATCH TYPE CLUTCH lI/IECI-IANISM Original Filed June 16, 1944 March 18, 1952 3' Sheets-Sheet '2 I I I Q I w I I I I II m II I II I II II @I INVENToR. mff

March 18,. 1952 W. H. BRADLEY 2,589,665 LATCH TYPE CLUTCH MECHANTSM Original Filed June 1.6, 1944 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 1N V EN TOR.

Zl/Lg'amrd@ Y @una I l Patented Mar. 118, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT l OFF [CE1L LATCH `TYPE CLUTCH MECHANISM William H. Bradley., Fort Wayne, Ind., assignerl to Horton Manufacturing Company,y Fort Wayne, Ind., a corporation of Indiana- Original application June 16, 1944, Serial No. 540,672.. Divided and this application May 22, 1948, SerialNo. 28,711'

lilClaims. Cl. 1924-28)A The invention relates generally to ironing ma-4` elements and power actuated meansfor effectingv the shifting movement including a clutch so situatedl in saidfmeansv thatl it requires-one revolution to eiiect movement of the elementstoward each other`r or from each other', thus necessitating'but a single disengagingf device, thereby simplifying the structure.

Other objects and advantages-will become ap-v parent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig; 1 is an end elevational view on a larger. scale with parts brokenv away tofshow the oper-v ating,l mechanism.

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional View taken'longif tudinally of themachine.

Fig.y 3 is ahorizontal sectional- View:V ofi the operatingy mechanism'.

' Fig. 4 is a detail of the-mechanism forl shifting one of the ironing-elementsltoward and fromthe other.

Fig; 5 is a detail of the'rolll driving mechanism.V The-presenty application is a. divisionoff my v'colpending application Serial No. 540;672,. ile'dl June 16, 1944, now:atentv No. 2,565,199; issued August21, 1951.

In an ironing machine of thevcharacter havinga pair of.l relatively movable ironing elementara power driven mechanism driven`r by anv electric motorl may be employed to :eiect the movement; of one element toward and fromtheother... In:

the case of a machine in; which atleast one of the elements is a roll, the power driven mecha:- nism is also usually employed to 'drivesuch: roll.

The inventionf herein disclosed relates to the v means by which the power driven mechanismzisi utilized to eiect the movement of the one element toward andfrom the other, as well as the manually operable control of` such'. means.. Suchv means in the prsent instance is: in the form oa clutch of novel construction and-readily operatedV by the manual control.

Inthe drawings, the. invention is'showniasl ein:uv bodied. in a-machine of the portable type,. al-

though theinvention is' not, of course; limited-to this particular type. The machinecempr-ises-a base 20, at one endofv which is a vertically/exe tending head 2l. Supported from thehea-d 2l is a roll 22 constituting one of the cooperatingironing elements. The roll 22 is positionedwith its axisv horizontal and extending-parallel? tothe: front of thevbase 20. The other ironing elementf in the present instance is a shoe 23 mounted-at the rear of the roll 2.2.

The two ironing elements, namely.. the= 12011122? and the shoe 23, are relatively shiftablel toward and from each other to permit the inserti'o'nv therebetween of an article to be ironed andito` permit the withdrawal'of'such anarticle; To eti-.- fect such movement, the shoe in the presentrinf-f.A

stance is shiitable, andfor such purposes the' shoe is provided onits rear side withl a.: pair of:

rearwardly extending ears 'llpivotally connected; by a pin25 (see Fig. 1): to an upstandingarmil'l." extending from. the base at al pointsubstantially midway between the endsof therolli22i; The

arm 26 is pivotally. supported to.. swing; theshoe.` 23 toward andi from the rolland for. tlspurf.

pose is. rotatably mountedon a rock: shaft-21 lo.-x

cated within the base 20 and extendingfr'omzthe;

arm 2li toward the head2l.

To effect the shifting movementv of the-ssho'e;

the shaft 21 has rigidly. secured; thereto. az; lever;

30.' which, in the present; instanc e;. extends; upg

wardly and is encased: by the'arnrfd 'Ihefleveiz` 30 is substantiallyl shorter. than thezarmc26fan'd1. pivotally supports at; itsupper enda` toggle: cle-1- vice comprising toggle membersv Sil-' and 321; the. l latter slidably extendingixthrough;the pini25ily whichk the'shoe is supported.'v The;togglememben 32 is' inthe form of, a screw." having a. mit. 3;3-E`

threadedthereon and agspring 3,4 bearing; against? thenutv at itslower endand against theN pin 25 at its upper end. The toggle membersrSfl and.

are normally held in an. extended; positionis that swinging movement of the shatyZalfandf' lever Se causes the arm 2-6 to shift thefshoertof ward the roll 2 2'. The togglefmembersflf andf32 constitute a means for releasing: thecshoexfromtheroll in case of emergency, anda to thisen-dwthe; lower toggle member 3l is-provided:withA upstanding hand? levery 35 byl whichi-thel toggle? maybe broken to permit thearm Ztofswingrn rearwardly from the roll;

Thev spring l also serves the `function. vivresiliently forcing the shoe toward;V thegrollwhell the shoe and roll are in cooperating. relation.- Suchy resilient means perlnitsrv the; shoe;` to; be.

forced away from the'roll varying; distances to`r accommodateV articles of diierent; thi'ck-nesses;y as; they are beinggironed. Thus; should arr article such as a Vfoldedv towelbe passedf throughfthev- 3 machine, the shoe will be moved rearwardly, thereby compressing the spring 3d to permit the arm 26 to swing slightly rearwardly without changing the position of the lever 35.

The shaft 21 is adapted to be rocked tack and forth to effect the shifting movement of the shoe, and when the shaft 21 is rocked in a direction to move the shoe away from the roll, the position of the shaft is such that the weight of the shoe and its supporting structure are at the rear side of the aXis of the shaft 21 and thus hold the shoe in its position remote from the roll. To prevent the shoe from swinging downwardly about the pin 25 when moved away from the roll, an abutment or seat 3S is provided on the arm 25 against which the shoe may rest when not in use. The shaft 21 is adapted to be rocked to effect the movement of the shoe by means of a curved lever S1 rigidly secured to the end of the shaft 21 adjacent the head 2i. The lever 31 is. shaped to extend forwardly within the base 20 and thence upwardly into the head 2|. Within the head 2|, the frfe end of the lever 31 is connected to mechanism by which the shoe may be shifted by the power drive of the machine.

The roll 22 is of the usual padded and cloth covered type, and in this instance is positioned so that it telescopes for a short distance over a portion of the head 2|, as shown in Fig. 2. Whilethe roll may have any desired construction, in the present instance it comprises a cylindrical sheet metal tube 43 rigidly mounted on a plurality of sheet metal dished members 4|, one of which is shown in Fig. 2. The dshed members are preferably positioned inwardly from the ends of the roll and are carried on and rigidly secured to a roll shaft 22. The roll shaft 42 extends from and is journaled in an extended portion i3 of a gear casing 54 supportedby the h-ead 2|. The gear casing it is thus concealed from view by being located within the roll 22.

The gear casing Mi is provided with a cover portion 45, and a motor .'55, by which the machine is driven, is mounted in the cover L35. The gear. casing and cover are so positioned that a portion of the cover i5 extends into the upper part of the head 2| to locate the motor d3 therein.. The motor d6 carries a fan i1 located within th-e head 2| and adapted to draw air into the head through louvers 55 formed in the head casting. The fan thus forces the lair around the motor and the gear casing and outwardly through the roll 22. To simplify the construction and assembly of the gear casing lili, its

cover 45, and the head 2 the gear casing and its l coverA are secured together by bolts which likewise secure the assembled casing and cover to the head 2|.

Since the motor 45 operates at a relatively high speed and it is desired to have the roll 22 operate at a muchY slower speed, reduction gearing is provided between the motor and the roll shaft 42. It is likewise desirable to stop the rotation of the roll whenever the shoe is moved out of cooperative relationltherewith. For this purpose, a clutch is provided in the gearing.

In the present instance, the gearing for driving the roll comprises a pinion 52 (see Figs. 1 and 3) mounted on the motor shaft and meshing with a gear 53 carried on a drive shaft 55. The

carries a pinion 55 adjacent its left end, meshing with a constantly rotating gear 55 rotatably mounted on a stub shaft 51. The stub shaft 51 is likewise journaled at one end in the gear 5 casing cover t5 and at its other end in the gear casing 44, and carries aclutch, indicated genorally at 50, for connecting the gear 55 in driving relation with the stub shaft 51. The stub shaft 51 has rigidly secured thereto a pinion 6| 1o meshing with a gear G2 carried on the righthand end of the roll shaft 42 within the gear casing 45.

'lhe clutch E5, in the present instance, comprises a shiftable member 63 (see Fig. 5i slidl5 ably mounted on the stub shaft 51 but secured for rotation therewith as by a key 64. The member 63 is provided with a flange 55 having a plurality of annularly arranged apertures 55 adapted to receive pins 6i rigidly mounted in and extending from the adjacent face of the constantly rotating gear 5B. The projecting ,ends of the pins 61 are rounded so that they will `cam themselves into the apertures 55, should they be out of alignment therewith when the flange 65 is moved toward the gear The shiftable clutch member is adapted to @be moved toward the gear 55 to effect engagement with the pins 51 by means of a coil spring 15 surrounding the stub shat 51 and abutting against a washer 1| held against endwise movement by a transvcrse pin 12. To effect disen- -ggagement of the clutch, the clutch member 63 is provided with a second flange 13 engageable by one arm of a bell crank id. The bell crank 1li is adapted to be manually operated to disengage the clutch at certain times in the opera- ;-tion of the machine and also is adapted to be Yengaged by a portion of the shoe shifting mechanism, as will be more fully described herein- 40 after, to hold the clutch in its disengaged position when the shoe is moved away from the roll.

The bell crank 'Eli comprises a somewhat elongated web portion 15 (see Figs. l, 2 and 5) bent at an angle to form the two arms of the bell crank and having at its two ends flange portions 1S which are pivotally supported by a bracket 11 secured to the interior of the gear casing M.

As heretofore mentioned, the shoe 23 is adapted to be shifted by power supplied by the motor 46.

and is adapted to shift the shoe in one direction or the other under the control of the operator, and to disengage the power drive from the mechanism automatically at the conclusion of the shifting movement.

In the present instance, the power for effecting the shifting movement is received from the drive shaft`5fi. Mounted on the shaft 54 adjacent its right end is a pinion 85 constantly driving a gear 8| (see Figs. l, 2 and 3) The gear 8| is rotatably mounted on a shaft 32, and rigidly secured to the gear 8| is a peripherally notched driving member 53. The notched driving member 53 thus is constantly driven.

Rigidly secured on the shaft 32 is a driven member Sli in the form of a disk provided with a hub 85. The disk portion of the driven member Y84 is closely adjacent the driving member 63 and is adapted to be connected therewith to eect engagement of the power drive for shifting the shoe.-

Such driving engagement is effected through a finger device 85 carried by the driven member 4. When the driving and'. driven members 83 and 84 are in driving engagement, the shaft 82 l is thereby rotated.v The Yshaft' 82 also. carries a..

Such mechanism is controlled by the operator` 4by the arrow in Fig; 1.

pinion 8"!v meshing with'fa gear 9|! mounted on a camsupporting shaft 9|. Mounted for rotation with the gear 90 isa cam 92 which, in the present instanceis of a form comprising a plurality. of lobes 93 adapted to successively engage acam follower or lever 94.

The camfollower or lever 94V has arounded'end portion- 95 (see Fig. 1) adapted? to bear against the periphery ofv the cam 92 so that the lever` 94' will be actuated by rotation of the cam. The lever 94 is pivotallyf supported intermediate its ends on a tubular member 9e mounted in4 the gear casing cover 45'. The lever 94 extends downwardlyf and at' its lower end carries a pin Si' for connecting the end'of the lever 9d; with.v the adjacent end of any intermediate lever ili. The leverl Hill-'isrmountedV on and is securedt'o a rock shaft IUI journaled in the gear casing cover and.

extending therethrough.. Secured tothe cuter end` ofthe rock shaft Ibi is a second intermediate lever. |112 pivotally connected byy spaced links |93v to. the; free end of the shoe actuating leverl 3i.

Byan inspection. of Fig. 1, it will be noted that when .the rounded'end portion 95 of the lever 9d is inengagement with the high point of one of the lobes 93 of the cam 92, the arrangement ol levers issuch that the free'end of the shoe actuating; lever. 3l' is moved downwardly to move the shoe; into yoperative relation with the roll, as shown in that figure. Further rotation of the cam will permit the rounded end portion of the lever 94 to move inwardly toward the cam axis and thereby raise the free end of the lever 37 to permit the shoe to fall away from the roil. In the present instance the weight of the shoe and its support are such that they tend to move away from the roll and thus hold the rounded portion 95 of the lever 94 in engagement with the cam 92.

Since the cam lever 9d and the iirst intermediate lever IQG are mounted on fixed pivots, the pin S'I'which connects these two levers must be permitted to shift relative to one of them to provide for the swinging movement of both of these levers about different axes. To this end, the pin 91 is lixed in one of the levers and operates in a slot in the other of these two levers. In the present instance the pin Sl' is fixed to the lower vend of the cam lever 94 and the slot, indicated at |553, isprovided in the end of the intermediate lever |00.

As heretofore mentioned, each lobe 93" of the cam 92 is adapted to effect a movement of the shoe toward the roll when the cam is moved through an angle equal toone half the angularity of` each lobe, and similarly is adapted to move the shoe away from the roll by an equal movement of the cam. Each lobe thus has a rising portion and a receding portion to effect such move-v ment, the cam rotating in the direction indicated The drive for the cam therefore must be stopped both at each low point as well as each high point, the low points being the position ofcontact with the rounded end 95 when the shoe is away from the roll and the high points being the point of contact with the rounded end 95 when the shoe is inoperative relation with the roll.

The. clutch for controlling the rotation of the cam.92, as mentioned above, comprises in the present instance the device Sii in the form of a nger cooperating with the notched driving member 83. The finger 3d is pivotally supported by a pin |95f (see Fig. 4f) extending from one face of the driven member 84, and is curved to extend about the driving member 831` Intermediate i'ts ends the nger 86- is provided with a tooth |06;-

and the finger is adapted toswing about the. pin |05 to movethe toothivintoen'gagementl with one of the notches in the. driving memberr 83 to thereby effect engagementv of the clutch. Diseng-agement of the clutch, obviouslygvis effected by swinging the linger 8S outwardl5r to movelthe tooth IiliV beyond the periphery of the. driving member 83; Normally the linger Stis urged ina direction to cause eng-agement with the tooth- |66 and the driving member 83A by aspring. Such spring, indicated here at IGT, is of the torsion# type and surrounds the pin |95, thev spring being located between the adjacent faces of thev finger 86 and the driven member 84. The spring l'i is provided with tangentially extending arms HD and Hl, the arm H having its end hooked to engage in an aperture i i2 in the driven member 4, and the arm I having its end hooked tofenthe driven member iid will thus rotate with the driving member 83.

'I'he finger at its other or free end, indicated at i l d, extends beyond the periphery of thedriven member 8f3 for engagement with a disengaging member, indicated generally at i5, movable into and out of the path of the end H4 of the linger 86. When the disengaging member I5 lies in the path of the end H4, engagement of the end i4 therewith causes the linger 8G to swing about Y the pin |85 and thus move the tooth |06 out of engagement with the driving member 83. When the 'disengaging member H5 is shifted out of the path of the end H4, the spring |31 causes the tooth |93 to move into engagement with the driving member 83.

The linger 96, in the present instance, provides a positive stop for the driven member 84 when the tooth lil@ is disengaged from the driving member 83. Thus it will be noted that the end |4 of the finger 85 swings outwardly when being disengaged by the member H5, such outward swinging movement brings the end I |14 more fully into engagement with the disengaging member H5 sothat rotation of the linger 85 and the driven member 84 will thereby be positively stopped by the disengaging member` HF. Such positive stop prevents over-running of the clutch, and the shoe consequently will dennitely. be, stopped in its shifting movementi either in its roll engaging position or when moved away fromV the roll.

It will be noted that each notch inthe driving member 83 has a straight rear side H 6- sothat the tooth @e will have positive engagement with the driving member duringy driving and. cannot` be forced out of such driving engagement. Theiforward side of the notch, however, is liaredoutl wardly, as at H7, away from the tooth to permit the tooth to move freelyy out of the notch when the linger 8d is swung about its pivotV pin. IE5.

Because of the positive stopping of the driven member 84 by the disengaging member i5, such stoppage is apt to occur the moment` that the tooth Ill barely clears the periphery ofthe driving member B3. Rotation of the driving member 83 relative to the tooth |96 is therefore apt to' cause a clicking noise between the two unless the tooth |93 is moved a substantialA distance'from the drivingmember 83; The present structuren Whenv theis arranged to prevent such clicking noise byY moving the finger 86 so that the tooth |05 is entirely clear rof the driving member. To this end, the nger 86 is provided with an elongated slot |20 in which the pivot pin |05 is received, and the ltorsion spring |01 is formed in a loop of substantially larger diameter than the pin |45. When the tooth |06 is in engagement with the driving member 83, as shown in Fig. 4, the torsion spring |01 first causes the finger to pivot counterclockwise about the pin H95. When the tooth |06 is fully engaged in the driving member 83, the pull of the driving member 83 tends to shift the finger 86 on the pivot pin |05 so that the latter will be positioned in the outer end of the slot |20, as shown in Fig. 4.

When the disengaging member ||5 swings the finger 86 to disengage the tooth |06 from the driving member, the movement of the finger 86 is first a pivotal movement about the pin |95. However, as soon as the tooth |06 is disengaged from the driving member, the torsion spring tends to swing the finger 85 about its end H4, and the finger will thus be shifted so that the pin |55 is at the inner end of the slot |20, the elongation of the slot being transverse to a line extending from the slot to the end Hl. Such shifting movement of the nger about the end H4 moves the tooth |05 entirely clear of the driving member 83 so that the former cannot click against the latter during relative rotation.

The disengaging member H5 is supported at its outer end for shifting movement by a rock shaft |2| extending through the tubular member 96, the rock shaft |2| being rotatable relative to the disengagng member ||5 for purposes hereinafter described. The disengaging member H5 is also supported adjacent its finger engaging end on an extension |22 of the cam supporting shaft 9|. The disengaging member is adapted to be shifted in a direction parallel to the axis of the driving member 03 and driven member 84 to move in and out of the path of the finger 86. Normally Y the disengaging member` H5 is urged into such path by a compression spring |23 mounted on the extension |22 and is adapted to be momentarily shifted out of such path by control means, hereinafter described.

It will be ovbious that, when the shoe is moved away from the roll, the compression of the spring 34 tends to cause an over drive of the shoe shifting' mechanism, and when the shoe is moved toward the roll, the spring 34 places a load on the motor in addition to that incurred merely by shifting the shoe,.since the spring 34 is compressed by the latter movement. The present machine is provided with means for effecting a braking action during the time when the spring 34 tends to assist the motor, and to store the energy expended in such braking action for return to the driving mechanism at the time when the load on the motor is greatest, that is, when the shoe is being moved toward the roll and the spring 34 is being placed under compression. To

accomplish this purpose, I provide an energy storing device acting in the present instance on the cam 92 and functioning to store energy during the time when a receding portion of the cam is in cooperative relation with the cam lever 04. The energy storing device is also operable to return such energy to the mechanism by tending to driveY the cam forwardly when a rising Vportion of the cam is in operative relation with the lever 94. As shown in Figs. 3 and 4, such energy storing devicecomprises a spring pressed member in in the head 2|.

the form of a plunger |24 slidably mounted inl a socket |25 formed in the cover 45 of the gear casing. The plunger |24 is movable in a direction parallel to the axis of the cam 92 and is provided with a conical head |20 adapted to bear on the periphery of the cam. Within the socket |25 and back of the plunger |24 is a compression spring |21 tending to force the plunger outwardly and to hold the conical head |26 in engagement with the cam. The plunger |24 is positioned so that it will engage a rising surface on one of the lobes of the cam when the lever 94 is in engagement with a receding surface, and will engage a receding surface of the cam when the lever S4 is in engagement with a rising surface.

As the cam rotates in a clockwise direction, as shown in Fig. 1, the rising surface of one of the lobes of the cam will cause the plunger |24 to move inwardly of the socket |25 and thus progressively comprises the spring |27. During'this period of time, the lever 94 engages a receding portion of the cam to permit the shoe 23 to move away from the roll. Since the spring 34 is at this time tending to assist the motor, the compression of the spring |21 will absorb energy and thus provide the desired braking action.

When the shoe is next shifted vtoward the roll, the lever 94 is in Contact with a rising portion of one of the lobes of the cam, and in the final part of the movement the motor also functions to compress the spring 34. Durngthis period of time, the plunger |24 is in contact with a receding portion of one of the cam lobes, and the energy previously stored in the spring |21 tends to drive the cam forwardly through a camming action between the conical head |25 and the periphery of the cam. Thus the energy previously stored in the spring |21 when the load on the motor was relatively light is now utilized toassist the motor when the load on the motor is relatively heavy. rlhe effect of the spring 34 on the drive mechanism is therefore counterbalanced, and the peak load on the motor is materially reduced, since when the spring 34 is tending to retard the drive mechanism, the plunger |24 is tending to advance the drive mechanism. In practical operation, it is found that a very considerably smaller motor may be used in the machine by virtue of the compensating effect of the plunger |24 and its function of reducing the peak load on the motor.

The shifting of the shoe is, of course, under the control of the operator, and the rotation of the roll is controlled as an incident to the shifting movement of the shoe. As heretofore described, the roll clutch 60, when the roll is operating, is adapted to be shifted out of engagement by the bell crank 14. Y To effect such shifting movement manually, the rock shaft |2|, which extends throughthe tubular member 96, carries adjacent its outer end an operating arm |35 (see Figs. 1, 3, 4 and 5). The operating arm |30 is provided with two angularly spaced actuating portions oifingers, one of which, indicated at |3|, is adapted to engage the adjacent arm of the bell crank 74 to so swing the bell crank as to force the clutch out of engagement with the gear 55. The rock shaft |2| xtends through the tubular member 96 and to a point outside of the gear casing cover 45 but with- The outer end of the rock shaft |2| is connected to manually operable means, hereinafter described, which is so constructed that the rock shaft and operating arm |30 mayV be rocked manually in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Figs. l -and 4. To return the arm |353 to its original position, a torsion spring Y|29 (see `Fig. 2) is mounted on the shaft I2| with one end secured to the shaft and the other end bearing against the adjacent portion of gear casing cover 45.

The actuating finger |3| of Ythe arm mais so positioned that it engages `the bell crank "if immediately upon the start of the rocking movement of the shaft |2|. The roll clutch {il} is thereby disengaged during the first lpart of the movement of the operating arm |30.

Further vrocking movement of the shaft |2| thereafter causes actuation of the shoe shifting mechanism. For this purpose the operating arm |3 is provided with a second actuating finger |32 movable parallel to the face of the disengaging member H5 and engageable with a cam surface |33 formed on the disengaging member I I5 intermediate its ends. The disengaging member H5, in its preferred form, comprises a strip of metal bent so that it may extend parallel and closely adjacent to the operating arm |33, and the cam Surface I 33 is provided merely by forminga bulge in the strip of metal. The second operating finger |32 is so positioned relative to the first operating finger |3| that the finger |32 engages the cam surface |33 after the roll clutch has been shifted. The disengaging member will thereby be shifted laterally out of the path of the clutch finger 86 of the shoe shifting mechanism to permit engagement thereof with the driving member 83 for effecting the shifting movement of the shoe away from the roll.

When the shoe is positioned away from the roll, means is provided for holding the roll clutch t@ disengaged so that the operating arm will not have to be manually held in a position to'stop the drive of the roll. To this end, the pivot pin 91 which connects the levers 9i and |83 is provided with an extension 34 projecting into the path of move- `ment of the bell crank 114i. When the shoe is away from theroll, the extension |34 engages the bell crank 11| so that the latter holds the roll clutch disengaged. The operating arm may therefore be released to be returned to its original position by the torsion spring |29, and the roll clutch will continue to be held disengaged.

Since the operating arm |3l vis permitted to return to its original position immediately after being rocked to move the disengaging member I5 out of the path 'of the finger $3, the disengaging member 'is shifted back into the'path of the finger 86 by the spring |23. Suchmovement of the disengaging member occurs during the time when 'the finger 86 and the driven member 86| are `making one revolution, or, in other words, when the cam 92 is moving throughone eighth of a revolution. The disengagin'g member I5 will thereupon effect disengagement of the nger 86 from the .driving member, and the shoe will remain in its position away from the roll.

To move the shoe toward the roll, the rock shaft |2| is again manually operated to rock the operating arm |30. The first actuating nger |3| does not, in this instance, affect the roll clutch 60,l

1,0 roll, the extension |35 is shifted by movement of the levers 94 and IUD, and the bell crank 14 permits the spring 'i0 of the roll clutch to cause engagement of such clutch and start the roll.

In present-day ironing machines, it is of course 'desirable to be able to stop the rotation vof the roll when the shoe is in operative relation therewith in order to utilize the machine for pressing. The present manual control provides for such .method of operation of the machine lwithout necessitating a separate control lever therefor. Thus, assume that the roll is 'rotating and the shoe is in operative relation thereto and it is desired to stop the roll to press the article being 'ironed.4 By rocking the rock-shaft |2| through the first part of its movement, the'roll clutch 60 may be disengaged `as described above. However, the operating arm 3f! need not be moved through its full range so that the shoe control clutch will not be actuated. Thus the shoe will remain in operative relation vto the roll but the roll Awill Abe stopped. Such stoppage of the roll may be continued so long as the rock shaft |2| isheld in its partially rocked position. Release of the rock shaft 2| so that it may be returned to its original position by the torsion spring |29 again `starts the rotation of the roll since the roll clutch will again become engaged. However, if it is desired to shift the shoe away from the roll at the conclusion of the pressing. the rock shaft |2| may then be operated tothe full extent of its movement for withdrawing the shoe from the roll.

If it is desired to shift the shoe toward the .roll and immediately utilize the machine for pressing without ever starting the roll, the rock shaft |24 is first moved through its full range of movement to effect shifting of the shoe. How- `every .instead of completely releasing .the rock shaft .so that it would move back to its original position, .it `is permitted to turn only part way .toward the original position, far enough so that the second actuating finger i 32 is clear of the cam surface |33 but the first actuating finger |3| is notshifted far venough to permit engagement of the clutch (ill. Thus the shoe willbe shifted toward the roll 4but the roll clutch will be held cut-of engagement.

The rock shaft 12| at its outer end but within the head 2| .is bent to provide a rearwardly eX- tending arm (see Figs. 2 and 3v). Connected to the outer end of the arm |35 is `a-link I 36 extending downwardly within the head* 2|. rThe lower end of the link |353 is adapted to be vconnested to a manually operable member provided with means extending externally ofthe machine, comprising a hand 'lever which imay be Aplaced in a number of different positions to 4suit the convenience of the operator.

In operation, the operator actuates the hand lever to rock the shaft I2| in `the desired-direction. Movement of the rork shaft v| 2| causes ,rocking movement-ofthe operating arm 39 Within the gear casing. Since the -roll clutch 60 is` held in disengaged position bythe 'extension |34 of the pin el' at this time, the roll clutch will be unaffected by movement of the operating arm However. `movement of the operating arm through its entire 'range .causes `the actuating finger |32 'to cam the disengaging member I|5 out of engagement With'the end Hl vof the clutch finger 355. The torsion spring |37 will then swing the finger iBS about the pin |35 and cause vthe ltooth ii'i to enter the notch in the driv'iingimember S3. Full driving engagement 4by the 4straight 11 rear side I6 of the notch in the driving member will thereupon cause rotation of the driven member 84. During the rst part of such driving movement, the linger 86 will be shifted on the pin |05 so that the latter is located in the outer end of the slot |20 in the nger, as shown in i Fig. 4. Y

Rotation of the driven member 85 effects rotation of the shaft 82 and the pinion 01 to drive the gear 90 Yand the shaft 9| carrying the cam 92.

latter, together with the rock shaft and the second intermediate lever |02, to swing in a clockwise direction. Such movement obviously through the links |03, lever 3l, rock shaft 2l and lever Yarm 26 will cause the shoe to be moved toward the roll.

When the iinger 86 is so disengagedy the driven member 84 will stop. The finger S5, however, is shifted entirely clear of the driving member 83 so'that no clicking noise will occur, since the torsion spring |01 will cause the finger 30 to pivot about its end H4 to the extent permitted by the elongation of the slot |20. In other words, the finger will swing so that the pin |05 occupies the inner end of the slot and the tooth |05 will be spaced a substantial distance from the driving member 83 so that the teeth of the latter cannot click against the tooth |06 during relative rotation.

After the article has been ironed and it is desired to stop the machine, the operator again actuates the hand lever. Such movement causes the actuating finger |3| to shift the roll clutch out of engagement and also moves the second actuating finger |32 against the cam surface |33 to shift the disengaging member H5 out of engagement with the end lil of the nger 05. The driven member 84 will thereupon be rotated through one revolution to cause the cam to move through one eighth of a revolution. vDuring such movement, the rounded end 95 of the lever 9d is in engagement with a receding portion of the cam, and the pressure of the spring 39 as well as the weight of the shoe and its supporting arm 26 tend to swing the shoe away from the roll.

The hand lever when actuated for causing movement of the shoe away from the roll is immediately released to swing back to its original position so that the clutch disengaging member will thereupon be moved into the path of the end ||4 of the finger 85 to disengage the latter after one revolution. As the levers 94 and |90 swing to move the shoe away from the roll, the extension |34 on the pin 91 is moved into position to hold the bell crank for retaining the clutch 60 in its disengaged position. Thus when the machine is idle with the shoe moved out of operative relation with the roll, the roll is held stationary.

I claim:

1. In an ironing machine, a notched driving member, a coaxial driven member, a nger having a pivotal connection at one end with the driven member, a tooth on saidfinger intermediate its ends for engaging said driving member, a disengaging member shiftable into the path of the other end of said finger, said pivotal connection comprising a pin and an elongated slot providing for shifting movement of the disengaging member relative to the driven member to permit the nger to pivot about said disengaging member when said tooth is disengaged, and a spring normally tending to swing said finger about said pivotal connection to effect engagement of the tooth and driving member and tending to swing said iinger about said disengaging member tomove said tooth clear of said driving member when disengaged therefrom.

2. In an ironing machine, a notched driving member, a coaxial driven member, a finger having a pin and slot connection at one end for pivoting the finger on said driven member, a tooth intermediate the ends of said finger for engaging said driving member, a disengaging membershiftable into the path of the other end of said finger to swing said iinger about said pin and thereby disengage said tooth from said driving member, said slot being elongated to permit said iinger to swing about said disengaging member, and a spring operable to swing said finger about said pin to effect engagement of said tooth with said driving member when the disengaging member is moved out of the path of said finger and tending to swing said finger about said disengaging member when engaged thereby to the extent permitted by engagement of said pin with one end of said slot, said finger being shifted by driving engagement with the driving member to an extent permitted by engagement of said pin with the other end of said slot.

3. In an ironing machine, a driving member, a coaxial driven member, a finger device pivoted on said driven member and s'hiftable into and out of engagement with said driving member, a disengaging member comprising an elongated member extending in a generally radial direction into the path of said finger device, a spring support for said elongated member supporting the latter for movement parallel to the axis of said driving and driven members and tending to hold l said elongated member in said path to disengage the finger device from said driving member, and a manually operable camming member pivotally supported to swing in a plane parallel to and adjacent said elongated member and engaging an intermediate portion of said elongated member to force it in a direction parallel to said axis out of the path of said finger device.

4. In an ironing machine, a driving member, coaxial driven member, a finger pivotally mounted on one face of said driven member and swingable about its pivot into and out of engagement with said driving member, a spring operated disengaging member normally extending in coplanar relation with said finger in the path of said iinger and comprising a metal strip having a bulge extending to one side thereof, and a manually operable camming member pivotally' supported to swing in a plane parallel to and adjacent said disengaging member and engageable with said bulge to force said disengaging member laterally out of the path of said nger.

I WILLIAM H. BRADLEY.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,782,572 Janda Nov. 25, 1930 1,921 301 Peter et al Aug. 8, 1933 V1,937,742 Lawrence Jan. 15, 1935 2,083,505 Ringer 'June 8, 1937 

